King Jesus

The presidential election is over…Hallelujah! Seriously, I am so glad I don’t have to listen to all the hatred and negativity and the country can try to move on. Whether you voted for president elect Donal Trump (it feels really weird to write that) or not, the vote has been cast and as is our great American tradition we work together for the sake of peace and unity.
I tried not to look at or listen to the results coming in on Tuesday night but as much as I tried to sleep and detach myself from it (I laid in bed with my earphones on listening to a variety of music which usually puts me right to sleep) I kept a weary eye on the continuing t.v. coverage. This whole “political season” seems like it has been going on for two years. It has been front and center in the news and political talk shows for more than a year. The non-stop coverage ramped up over the summer months with the Republican and Democratic debates and conventions and a full on media blitz ensued until the remarkable and amazing crescendo of Tuesday night. And I guess, this is just the beginning. Now we will hear non-stop discussion until the inauguration on January 20, 2017 and then it will go on and on and on. All this attention and hubbub (I wasn’t sure that was still a word but it wasn’t auto-corrected) over a man. A man with a position, albeit a very powerful and influential one. But a man nonetheless. A man, like all of us, fallen, scarred, flawed and imperfect. Yet, we pay attention and some even celebrate and elevate to very lofty positions.

In six weeks (yes, I said six weeks) we will be celebrating the birth of Jesus. I can tell you that the man who has had the single greatest impact on the entire world in terms of the words He preached, the principles He taught, the life He lived, the character He displayed, the love He gave and the work He did for us will barely get a mention on the major television news and talk shows. Although they will spend hours dissecting the evils and deficiencies of the presidential candidates they will barely mention the One who lived a perfect life of love and obedience. And many stations will substitute “Happy Holidays” for “Merry Christmas” so as not to get too close to saying Christ out loud.

I am not saying that it is the job or responsibility of the media to promote Jesus or Christmas. It is not up to Anderson Cooper, Rachel Maddox, Connie Chung or Bill O’Reilly to tell the story of the person and work of Christ. That task was divinely given to the Church, to the followers of Jesus. It is referred to as The Great Commission in Matthew 28:. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Instead, my point is simply this: That the King of the Universe who deserves all the attention and coverage and could fill up hours of programming will be largely ignored . It is the way of the world. It reminds me of an old skit we did in youth group many years ago: It was about an alien from Mars who visits planet earth and has a discussion with a young girl: After much dialogue the last few lines went something like this:

Girl: We once had someone come to earth from another place…from heaven. His name was Jesus.

Alien: Jesus came to earth! You mean the Creator of all the universe came to your planet? We have heard about Him and we know that He is God…He is The King…but we have never seen Him. How did you celebrate Him? Did you have parades? Were there parties? Did all of your planet bow down and worship Him? Was He as magnificent and majestic as we have heard? That must have been the greatest news ever…that God would come to your planet. Tell me, how did you respond?

Girl: We killed Him.

Jesus was rejected when He came to earth and He will not get much attention on the news this Advent and Christmas season. But as followers of Jesus we can tell the good news of Jesus to as many people as we meet. We can give them hope and share with them life. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, class mates and strangers all can use some good news these days, don’t you think? Extend yourself, open your homes, do a good deed, buy a gift, Invite them to church. Yes, we have a new president… but even better, we have King Jesus.

What do you think? How does it make you feel?

Blessings,

Steven

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Daily Prayer For The Week

Lord, please help me.
I am so slow to learn,
so prone to forget,
so weak to climb;
I am in the foothills when I should be
on the heights;
I am pained by my graceless heart,
my prayerless days,
my poverty of love,
my sloth in the heavenly race,
my sullied conscience,
my wasted hours,
my unspent opportunities.
I am blind while light shines around me:
take the scales from my eyes,
grind to dust the evil heart of unbelief.
Make it my chiefest joy to study thee,
meditate on thee,
gaze on thee,
sit like Mary at thy feet,
lean like John on thy breast,
appeal like Peter to thy love,
count like Paul all things garbage..
Give me increase and progress in grace
so that there may be
more decision in my character,
more vigour in my purposes,
more elevation in my life,
more fervor in my devotion,
more constancy in my zeal.
Amen

- A Puritan Prayer

Weekly Memory Verse

"I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ”